Leaders of the House of Representatives on Sunday rejected the possibility of passing a measure to legalize same-sex marriage in the Philippines. Read the rest of this entry »

MANILA, Philippines – This is definitely not a love story.

We all want our happy ever after, don’t we? When we were in high school, we would swoon over our celebrity crushes, dress up nice during soirees, feel good when our prom dates turn out to be handsome young men who treat us like princesses. Between high school and college would be our crucial love stories  first love, first boyfriend (not necessarily one and the same), first heartbreak, next boyfriend/s, next heartbreak/s, then finally The One. Or so we thought. Read the rest of this entry »

Mama, watch this with me. It’s so inspiring,” my 12-year-old daughter, Sophi, said, laptop in hand. We settled in bed and logged on to www.ted.com, a website devoted to “ideas worth spreading,” as their tagline says. Ted.com is an online cache of “riveting talks by remarkable people.” Read the rest of this entry »

For so many years now, some sectors, especially women and the leftist groups have been agitating for changes in our laws which they consider outmoded and not in keeping with the times. Certain age old Filipino customs and traditions embodied in these laws have been assailed because they are not allegedly in step with realities and modern technological trends. These sectors claim it is about time that these customs and traditions should be discarded to help improve contemporary conditions particularly the problem of poverty. Thus they have been pushing for the passage of an RH bill for several years now. As already shown, this bill promotes contraceptive lifestyle that degrades marriage. In fact, even before the RH Bill is passed these sectors are also proposing already a bill to legalize divorce in this country. Read the rest of this entry »

Dear PAO,
Greetings!
I have three children born out of wedlock but the father acknowledged them in their birth certificates. Before we were living happily but later on he abandoned us. According to his cousin, he has a new lady. Presently, he is working in Saudi Arabia and I want to ask for financial support from him because our children are now in the elementary level. I want to approach PAO at Biñan, Laguna but please refer me to someone you know in that office who can help me about my problem.

Respectfully yours,
A.C.B. Read the rest of this entry »

Guest column contributed by Ric Saludo’s colleague Maria Carmina Olivar

Last of two parts

HIGHLY Westernized societies like ours tend to look to America in search for guidance, or at least a reference point on weighty issues. Hence, it may be worthwhile to see how the United States has handled the matter of divorce through the years, and what social impact it made on American family life. Read the rest of this entry »

Guest column contributed by Ric Saludo’s colleague Maria Carmina Olivar

First of two parts

THE recent renewed push to legalize divorce by amending the Family Code is not as controversial the Reproductive Health (RH) Bill—at least not yet. But divorce legislation—or rather the lack of it—has given the Philippines somewhat of a unique status in the global arena. After Malta passed its divorce law in July to take effect next month, the Philippines became the only nation left banning divorce. Read the rest of this entry »

There are, perhaps, millions who marry around the world every day. Yet, perhaps, too, half as many married couples separate or get estranged from each other every day. What accounts for the break up of marriages? How do couples who are so in love on their wedding day end up hating each other? Read the rest of this entry »

For continuously failing to solve our country’s poverty problem, some members of Congress and the Executive seem to be bent on intruding into, instead of protecting the more personal aspects of the citizens’ life — marriage and family. Aside from the RH bill, they are now proposing a Divorce bill. Read the rest of this entry »

MANILA, Philippines—The absence of divorce in the country is a “point of honor for the Philippines,” according to the new papal nuncio, suggesting that the Vatican favored the Catholic Church’s opposition to legislation allowing divorce here. Read the rest of this entry »